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The procedure at mealtimes (2/3) Think of how many people worked to prepare you
food, and The monks ate in the refectory once a day in winter and twice in summer when a light supper was served to supplement dinner and sustain the community through the longer days and greater time spent on manual labour. The monks also entered the refectory for drinks such as those served after Nones.
As soon as the monks heard the bell ringing to announce dinner (prandium) they made their way to the basins that stood to either side of the refectory entrance, to the west of the warming house (the lavabo), to wash their hands. Lead pipes carried water to stone basins, lined with pewter, which were set in niches. Thereafter the monks proceeded to the refectory where the tables were arranged in a U-shape around the walls. The monks sat on stone benches facing inwards; at Meaux Abbey, backs were added to the seats in the late fourteenth century. The food was already set on the tables, for the kitchener and cellarer, two monastic officers, were to place the dishes on the table before the bell announcing dinner was rung. Food was passed to the refectory from the kitchen through a dumb-waiter-style hatch in the west wall. The monks stood while a blessing was read in Latin and then took their seats. However, nobody was to start eating until the prior (or whoever was presiding), who sat on a dais at the southern end of the refectory, had uncovered his bread.
The monks usually drank ale and ate vegetables and bread, but on special occasions, such as feast days, they might receive fish, eggs or a similar treat. Meat was not to be eaten in the refectory but was later permitted in a separate building, the misericord. |
